My College Experience

W

ell, it finally happened 👨‍🎓.  I graduated from college on May 2021. In all honesty, I did not really enjoy my college life. Most of the stuff that I learned and all the memories that I will cherish from these past five years happened outside the class. Although I was meant to go to college, college was never meant for me.

Most of the time, the goal was to study hard to pass a course minus the zeal to learn something new. What others did with ease, I had to do with lots of struggle. To put it quite simply, I did not like what I was doing. I always felt encaged in an academic environment along with the fear of failure which only worsened my procrastination. But this is what I chose. No one forced or pressured me to make that decision. I still remember the night when I told my dad that I wanted to study abroad. He trusted me and agreed. When I look back, I wonder if going to college was a good idea?

There's no such thing as quitting. Just sometimes there's a longer pause between relapses
- Alan Moore

Being away from home these past four years was harder for my parents, especially my mom who suffered through a depression. She is fine and healthy now. It was definitely an overwhelming experience for all of us. But it was a once in a lifetime experience and I have no regrets.. Going all the way is better than the willingness to just go anywhere. That is real openness. I'm glad I finished what I started and I'm proud of having had the priviledge to be a bulland a knight . I have nothing but gratitude for my parents, grandparents, and sister who gave me a chance and supported me every step of the way even though I gave them a hard time.

College students are like herds of cattle. Those who succumb to the flow and succeed become free. Those who don't are sent to the slaughterhouse where they get crushed and crumbled by society unless they prove otherwise. No wonder, the Gates and Zuckerbergs of our time are fetishized for their unconventional success. Drop-outs that do not make it are usually looked down upon and are perceived as failures in the eyes of society. However, a blissed out failure is far better than a miserable success.

Intelligence should not be smeared with knowledge. If you really want to know, beware of your knowledge.
- Sadhguru

The Future

Education today is a process of filling the mind with the contents of books, emptying the contents in the examination hall and returning empty-headed.

My academic education is now over but the learning process still continues. But this is going to be a different kind of learning. A learning that does not acquire knowledge but experience; A learning which is free of all conditioning; A learning that does not require intent, but complete attention; A learning that is driven neither by motivation nor inspiration; Learning simply for the sake of learning.

We are told to make a living. After making a living, we don't know why the hell we are living. Hence, the famous saying, "the road to hell is usually paved with good intentions." I shall choose my own path instead, rather than trying to meet society's expectation of an impossible perfection; It's an endless pursuit. Education is for life, not for a living. On to the next chapter of my life, not for the sake of survival, but for the zeal and excitement of life itself.